Michigan blows past No. 1 Arizona, secures berth in National Championship

Absolutely no one saw coming what happened at Lucas Oil Stadium late Saturday night. What was built up to be one of the best college basketball matchups of all-time turned into a complete dud as the top-seeded Michigan Wolverines simply continued business as usual in the national semifinal.

U-M dominated from start to finish. The Wolverines secured a 91-73 victory, breaking numerous records in the process. Most notably, Michigan became the first team in the history of the NCAA Tournament to score 90 or more points in five games of any single national tournament.

Arizona was outmatched from the onset of this Final Four matchup. Michigan almost immediately jumped out to a 10-1 lead, and the Wolverines continued to stretch the lead as the first half continued. With Yaxel Lendeborg on the bench with two fouls—and later in the locker room nursing injuries to his knee and ankle—Arizona cut the lead to just five points, 28-23, with 6:43 left in the first half.

But from that moment on, the Wolverines outscored the Wildcats, 20-9, to take a commanding 48-32 lead into the halftime break.

During intermission, halftime show analyst Charles Barkley noted Michigan looked “unbeatable,” which seemingly perfectly set the stage for a tight second half finish. However, U-M kept its foot on the gas. The Wolverines stretched their lead to as many as 30 in the second half, and Arizona never even looked to belong on the same court as the Wolverines.

Aday Mara finished the game with a career-high 26 points on 11-of-16 shooting and a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line.

Trey McKenney (16), Elliot Cadeau (13), and Morez Johnson Jr. (10) all finished in double figures, too. Roddy Gayle Jr. also added nine points off the bench for the Wolverines.

But perhaps the most impressive part of Saturday night’s 18-point demolition of Arizona was that Lendeborg played only 14 minutes. The Wolverines demolished a No. 1 seed in the national semifinal with its best player and Big Ten Player of the Year being a non-factor for a large majority of the game.

There aren’t enough good things to say about this Michigan team, and now it is just one win away from cementing its legacy as one of the best college basketball teams of all time.

Connecticut stands in the way of Michigan and its first national championship in 37 years. Monday night’s game will tip-off at 8:50 p.m. ET.